A Walk in the Woods
by Kurai the Scarlette Kitsune
Summary: After a chance meeting, people have a tendency to change. They may even fall in love. A walk in the woods is just what this couple needs to lay bare everything that will tie them together as best friends and lovers. -Yeah...I suck at summaries. Just read and find out what I mean.


**Hello to all! This is Kurai and I just wanted to say a couple things before I let you read this. This is the first story I have published here, and I hope I did a good job of it. The reason I wrote this was because I was talking to my friend, AdventureThief (you should check her stories out. They're great!) about the HiJack fandom. We decided to write from the same prompt and then compare stories. The prompt was:** _Jack and Hiccup explore the countryside of Berk by themselves after a couple months of Jack hanging out (before Guardianship)._ **From there we could decide what we wanted to do with the story. This is the take I had on it.**

**I hope you all enjoy it. And now, without further ado, I present:**

_A Walk in the Woods_**  
**

This is Berk, where it snows nine months of the year and hails the other three. I don't mind that so much anymore. I mean, I know the reason why now and it isn't so bad. Ah, let me explain. About three months ago, I stumbled upon a white haired youth at the top of Dragon Rock as I was taking Toothless for his daily ride.

As I saw him, I thought he was an old man and took Toothless down to investigate. It turns out he looked about eighteen, just a couple years older than me. He was about 5'11", twig-like, extremely pale, and was wearing brown trousers, a white tunic with a ratty brown vest, and a brown cloak. The really odd thing about him was the fact he wore no boots. He also carried with him a gnarled staff.

When Toothless and I landed, he immediately turned on us, pointing his staff at us in a defensive position. Toothless, in turn, growled at him, forcing me to calm Toothless down. The teen seemed to recognize we weren't a threat and backed off. Turning away, he continued staring out at the sea. I hopped off Toothless and approached the white-haired boy.

"Um…excuse me…" He turned sharply toward me, eyes wide in surprise. "Yeah, uh, are you….ok? How did you get here?" I questioned.

"You…you can see me?" I looked at him in mild confusion.

"Yeah? Why wouldn't I be able to? I mean, I thought you were an old man at first which was why I can down here…oh, Gods. I'm sorry! That sounded like an insult. Man….there I go screwing things up again." I sighed. Really. I screw things up all the time. After all, I am a hiccup, the runt of the litter, the most un-Viking-like Viking on the island. I mean, even my _name_ is Hiccup. I am a scrawny, good-for-nothing Viking who just so happens to be the son of the Chief. I also, just so happen to have saved the entire island from dragons by befriending one and killing the main dragon controlling the rest. Now we are at peace with the beasts, and I am head of the Dragon Training Academy. But that's beside the point and a story for another day.

The youth was just staring at me in wonderment before twirling around and shouting joyously. Now that confused me even more than I originally was. He finally made his way back over to me and hugged me. He was so cold!

"Woah! You are like an ice cube! Are you ok?" I exclaimed. He pulled away and held me at arm length.

"You'll never believe me, but I am completely fine. This is how I am supposed to be. My name is Jack, by the way. Jack Frost." Now it was my turn to stare at him wide eyed. Jack Frost. The Jack Frost, otherwise known as Jokul Frosti to us?

"Jack Frost? As in, THE Jack Frost? But but but, you….that….that's only a legend! An old wives' tale meant to teach children to bundle up so we wouldn't freeze! How-why-wha-" My stuttering was cut off by Jack.

"Yes. I really am Jack Frost. The Man in the Moon told me so. I bring about winter and snow and all that stuff."

"….so you're the reason it snows nine months of the year and hails the other three?" I deadpan. His eyes widened at that.

"Oops….yeah. I, uh, I have been learning to control my powers here…." He trailed off as he stared at his feet in embarrassment. I kinda felt sorry for the guy. I rubbed my upper arm as a nervous gesture.

"It…it's okay. I mean, we've gotten used to it and most of us have thick hides anyway, so it's not like the cold really gets to us a lot of the time." I shrugged. "You can keep practicing here for the time being if you want. It would be really odd for the weather to completely change on us all of a sudden after all," I explained in a rush after I saw him still looking ashamed. He looked at me with a large smile on his face.

"By the way, what's your name? I would like to know who the first person to ever see me is."

"OH! Sorry! How rude of me. I'm Hiccup Horrendous Haddock III, but you can just call me Hiccup." He started laughing. Like, clutching his stomach and rolling around laughing. Yup. That's the normal reaction of foreigners to my name. I sighed again and slapped my hand to my face in embarrassment. I just knew my cheeks were flushed.

Toothless came up beside me and nudged me, growling in concern. I just patted him on the head to soothe him. I was alright, really, just embarrassed at my own name. Jack stopped laughing when Toothless growled.

"Woah. What is that thing?" He asked in wonderment.

"This is Toothless, a Night Fury, the unholy offspring of lightning and death itself." Jack's eyes widened in disbelief and confusion. I continued, "In short, he's a type of dragon, one of the deadliest, actually. And…he's my best friend."

"Your best friend is a dragon?! That's so cool! How'd that happen?" I looked at Toothless, then back at Jack.

"It's a long story. Let's head inland, and I'll tell it to you," I said as I hopped onto Toothless' back and held out my hand to Jack. He just brushed it off.

"Fun fact of the day, I can fly on my own. I'll just follow you and the giant reptile." I looked at him again in amazement, but then thought about it and since he creates storms, it makes sense that he could ride the wind. I shrugged and patted Toothless on the head.

"Let's go boy. To the Cove." And like that, we took off. We flew to the Cove I first befriended Toothless in, and I told Jack my story while he told me his. And that, is how I met Jack Frost.

Over the last three months, I've gotten to know him so much. He told me how he just woke up one day as Jack Frost. He came up from a frozen lake and the Man in the Moon told him his name, but hasn't spoken to him since. Jack doesn't remember anything from his past or how exactly he came to be Jack Frost. He's been on his own, trying to figure things out for the past 50 years or so.

I am the first one to see him. For some reason that makes me feel extremely special. Kinda how I felt when I met Toothless. I feel like this is something that only I can do, only I can experience. Jack is now about on par with my friendship as Toothless is. They both know me the best. Even Toothless has befriended Jack! It was hilarious.

_~~~~~-Flashback-~~~~~_

One day about a month after our first meeting, Jack and I were in the Cove, just talking and watching Toothless play around in the water. Well, he caught a fish and ate it, then walked over to Jack. Jack looked up at him in question. Then….Toothless regurgitated half the fish onto Jack's lap! I just started laughing and rolling around on the ground while Jack was looking at the fish like it had re-grown its head.

I finally calmed down enough to explain what happened to my frosty friend. "He wants you to take a bite out of it. And you HAVE to swallow it," I explained. Jack just looked at me in disgust. However, he saw both of us watching him, so he took a small bite of the raw, half-digested fish and swallowed. I noticed he barely contained vomiting it up and kept it down, holding out the rest of the fish to Toothless. Toothless, just walked up to him, grabbed the fish and ate it, then licked Jack's face.

"Ugh…that was so gross…why did I have to do that?" he asked as he shuddered in disgust, still looking like he might hurl any moment.

"So Toothless would accept you as a friend. He did the same thing to me." I shrugged as I smiled lopsidedly at him. He just shuddered again in disgust at having to eat raw fish. I laughed at him again and went back to watching Toothless who had gone back to frolicking in the water.

_~~~~~~-End Flashback-~~~~~~_

Ever since meeting him, Jack has toned down on winter and bad winter here on Berk. He still practices here, but he allows us to actually have sunlight and slightly warmer days! It's somewhat nice to have those from time to time. However, that makes it easier for my friends to follow me to see where I have been disappearing to. The time they almost caught us last month was a very bad ordeal in my mind. Of course, Jack thoroughly enjoyed the chase.

_~~~~~~~-Flashback-~~~~~~_

After disappearing in the afternoons for about two months to talk to Jack, my friends were thoroughly suspicious…again. Mainly, it was Astrid who was the most curious. She had taken to following me once more. It was a really good thing I knew the woods like the back of my hand and was able to lead her astray. However, she got the others involved too. So I had to throw off an entire group instead of just one person.

Normally, whenever Jack was around, it snowed, which made it a little harder for them to follow me. Why? It was because it snowed a lot and fast, blinding them and covering my tracks. The weird thing was, one day, it did not snow. It was clear, completely clear. Decently warm temperature, no snow on the ground, the ground was completely dry even.

I was freaking out, trying to lose them when low and behold, Jack popped up right next to me. As I was moving around he questioned me about what was going on.

"They've taken to following me around. Apparently, my disappearing every afternoon with Toothless raises suspicions again," I said hurriedly and with exasperation. I glanced at him to see a mischievous smile on his face. I looked at him half in fear and half in exasperation. "Please don't be planning anything stupid."

"Me? Plan something stupid? Never. I only plan awesome and extremely fun games," he said with a smirk in place. I slapped my palm to my face.

"Da dada….I am so dead." I turned to Toothless, who was hiding in some of the brush. "Please help." He looked at Jack, then back at me, then back at Jack and gestured to his back. I sighed in relief. I had Toothless and Jack. We could just go somewhere else and ditch these guys. It would be easy enough to fly out of here unnoticed. Apparently, though, my dragon had the same plan as Jack – he was anything but inconspicuous flying out of the forest.

Toothless took off and flew through the forest a bit, catching the eye of Astrid and Storm Fly, who then started following us. Next was Snotlout and Hookfang, followed by Fishlegs and Meatlug. Ruff, Tuff, Barf, and Belch never did notice us. I think they were too busy fighting to care.

Anyway, we ended up flying around the island with them hot on our tails. I was nervous as all get out because I knew they would question me like I had the most important, life-saving information in the world once they caught us. Jack, on the other hand, seemed to be thoroughly enjoying himself, yelling at the other riders.

"Woohoo! You guys are such slow-pokes! You'll never catch us! Hahaha!" He was also jumping around and making faces at them. From what I could see, they didn't notice him at all.

As we were flying around the perimeter of the island, we came across an alcove behind a larger rock protrusion. We headed toward it to hide in and watched the others fly right by. I heaved a sigh of relief and had Toothless take us back to the Cove. It was clear flying the whole way back and Jack was unusually quiet.

When we got back to the Cove, I rounded on Jack and Toothless.

"WHAT WERE YOU TWO THINKING?! We could have been caught and then I'd be interrogated and they would never believe me and then I'd be a huge disappointment again for being insane!" I yelled at them with a furious look on my face.

"Aw come on, Hiccup. Wasn't the chase exhilarating? Didn't it excite you? And then knowing you outsmarted them and got away makes you feel so great, right?" The smile on Jack's face was positively glowing. He looked so happy and excited I just didn't have the heart to stay mad at him. Toothless looked properly chastised, but I could still see a spark of enjoyment in his wizened eyes. I sighed, throwing my hands in the air in defeat.

"Ok, I admit. It was kinda fun. But can we please NEVER do that again? I think I lost years on my life from the anxiety." Jack flew over and hugged me.

"See? Don't I come up with fun plans? That was a great way to spend the afternoon and it was a nice change of pace!" He went back to flying around the Cove in happiness. Toothless had gone over to the little cave-like area to rest while I sat down by the pond edge and watched Jack have his fun, shaking my head in amusement the entire time.

_~~~~~~-End Flashback-~~~~~_

Ok. So I did have fun with it, but it seriously took years off my life. Now, we are three months into my knowing Jack. This has seriously been three of the best months of my life. I feel like I have made a new best friend who understands me and all of my problems. He's always there for me to talk to. It's really nice to have another person to talk to about some of this stuff so I can get feedback. Don't get me wrong, I love Toothless, but he can't answer me even if he can understand what I say.

The only problem is I've started getting these strange feelings when I am around Jack and even when I'm just thinking about him. Like right now. My heart is pounding and my breath has gotten shorter, choppier. I just feel so warm when I'm around him, even though he is the king of winter. I want to be around him more….and that scares me.

I've never had these strong of feelings for anyone before, not even Astrid. It also scares me because I feel this way about a boy. Dad's going to expect me to carry on the line, but I can't if I like a boy. It's just wrong, but it feels so right. I don't know what to do. There's also the problem of his immortality. I'll keep getting older while he stays eighteen for the rest of eternity.

While I sit here debating what to do, a cold wind blows by me. I look to my left and see Jack perched upon his staff with a smirk on his face. I smile at him in return.

"You ready to go, kiddo? Today is going to be so fun!" He flips off his staff and holds out a hand to me. "Time to go flying with me," he says as he gives me a gentle smile, probably to make sure I trust him enough to fly with me.

Today is a special day. Today it has been exactly three months since I met Jack and we have pretty big plans. Well, for me at least. I am leaving Toothless in the Cove for the day and going flying with Jack, Then, we'll probably just talk some more, but the big thing of the day is flying without Toothless carrying me. I'll admit, it does make me nervous.

"Yeah. I'm ready, Jack. Let's go and see how this plays out," I say as I stand up and brush the dirt off my trousers.

"Are you going to be warm enough? I am quite cold and we'll be flying for a while," he asks with a concerned look at my lack of warmer clothing. I look down and notice I'm wearing my usual dark green trousers, lighter green tunic, brown fur boot – yes only one since I lost part of my left leg during the fight with the Green Death – and my brown leather riding vest. I guess I will get cold.

I look back up at him to see him holding out his brown cloak to me, leaving him in only his tattered brown trousers, white tunic, and brown vest – his wardrobe never changed because that's what he woke up with and it never really gets dirty anyway.

"Are you sure?" I question hesitantly.

"Positive. I like the cold and it's not like I'll freeze," he says with a smirk. That darned smirk!

I make to grab the cloak when he holds it out in a fashion to put it on me himself. I can't help the heat that rises to my cheeks at the gesture. Nonetheless, I go over to him and let him put the cloak on me. There was no point in fighting with him about it. He'd win anyway.

His cloak is surprisingly warm. I can't help but snuggle into it and inhale the scent of freshly fallen snow and winter itself that is Jack's unique scent. I look up to see him looking at me in a confused manner. I feel my cheeks heat up for the second time in less than a minute.

"Sorry. It's just surprisingly warm. And it smells like freshly fallen snow. It's a unique scent for an item of clothing," I explain myself rather rapidly. He chuckles at my antics, shakes his head, and holds out his hand to me.

"Do you trust me, Hiccup? Do you trust me enough to take a journey with me?" Jack asks, completely serious for once.

His question takes me by surprise – and I'm sure it showed on my face – but I thought about it. It made sense. I _had_ to trust him completely, like I trusted Toothless. Flying was a big deal, especially with the Winter Sprite himself and not with a dragon. I needed to put my full faith in him in order for this to work. I had to truly _believe_ in him and his abilities. At that thought, a small grin breaks out on my face.

I look at Jack with that grin and a soft look in my eyes and I take his out-stretched hand. "Yes, Jack. I trust you. Completely. I believe in you." His facial expression can only be described as beautiful, the way a large smile breaks out on his face, showing off his pearly-white teeth. I don't think I've ever seen Jack that happy.

"Well then, let's go!" He yells in excitement and drags me to his side. "Wind! Carry us away!" He calls out as he jumps into the air with us both.

I get the initial feeling of weightlessness in my stomach as I cling to Jack tighter, slightly scared. But soon enough, we're flying away as the wind carries us toward the edge of the woods on the far side of the island. As the breeze caresses my face, I smile, leaning into Jack. I look into his face to see an expression of ecstasy. He truly loves flying.

He looks down at me to see how I'm doing, I assume. When he sees my smile, he laughs exuberantly. Then, he held out his staff to me so I could grasp it too. Thus far, we've been flying horizontally with me pressed to his side, hugging him essentially.

"You trust me?" he asks again, just to make sure.

"Yes," I say with no hesitation whatsoever.

"Then grab a hold of the staff." I take a deep breath and stretch out my hand. As my hand finds purchase, we swerve to the right.

"Shit!" I scream in surprise and fear. I almost retract my grip when Jack's hand lies on top of mine, keeping it there.

"Relax. Think of flying straight ahead." I follow his instructions and think about flying left to get us back on track and then straight. Next thing I know, we are doing exactly that. My eyes widen in wonder. Wha-was I controlling the flight pattern? My jaw drops in wonder at that thought.

Jack laughs in excitement. "You're flying, Hiccup! You're controlling us. How does it feel? Exhilarating? Scary? All of the above?"

"All of the above, but how am I flying us?"

"It's all in the staff. As soon as you touched it, I relinquished control to you," he smiled sheepishly at me. "I should have told you, right?"

I laugh a little and keep us flying straight. "It would have been nice, but either way, this is pretty cool."

We keep heading toward the far edge of the woods. When we get close enough, I take my hand off the staff and wrap it back around Jack's waist, letting him land us. We near a clearing about a mile from the cliff edge. Jack takes us down at an alarming pace, making my heart race and jump into my throat. I'd only ever gone that fast with Toothless.

Right before we hit the ground in the middle of the clearing, he pulls back and we hover. That allows me to drop to the ground easily and harmlessly. He lands next to me, smiling triumphantly.

"So, how did you like it? Flying on your own for once," he questioned, looking at me expectantly. I took a deep breath and glanced at him seriously.

"That…..was amazing, Jack. One of the best experiences of my life. Thank you," I say earnestly as I give him a thankful grin.

"That's not all I have planned for today, though, Hiccup. Follow me," he states as he once again, holds out his hand to me. This time, I take it with no hesitation. He leads us out of the clearing, into the woods, along a semi-clear path that seems to have been lightly frosted over.

I've never been in this part of the forest, mainly because it is a good three day walk away from our village and I just haven't explored this area with Toothless yet. Since the path is mostly clear and just snowy as opposed to icy, I really take a good look at my surroundings. Jack had really left his mark in the area. All of the trees are lightly coated in fern-like frost, the brush is lightly dusted with snow, and the sun is hitting the frost just right to create beautiful rainbows on the path. It isn't too cold, but there is a light nip to the air.

As we continue walking, I keep my hand in his. In all honesty, it feels nice, holding hands with someone, especially Jack. Oddly enough, for being a frost spirit and his body temperature being lower than normal, his hand is a pleasant chilled-feeling. It is comforting actually. And the way my hand feels in his is like our hands were made for each other. They are a perfect fit. Oh no, I'm thinking about this too much again.

I glance over at him through my bangs, just knowing there is a light dusting of red on my cheeks. He catches me looking at him and gives me a shy smile in return. He grips my hand a little tighter and leads on through the forest. No words need to be said. We are in mutual, amiable silence. The only sounds that surround us are the sounds of our feet crunching the snow that lies beneath them.

I admire the scenery of this part of the forest, glad I can share my first time here with Jack. The more I think about it, the more I am accepting these feelings I have for him. I like him – plain and simple. I might even chance saying I have fallen in love with him in just three short months. He has become my everything and has pushed all thoughts of Astrid out of my mind completely. He is my best friend, well, aside from Toothless that is. I'm just too much of a coward to say anything to him about it. I mean, what is there to like about me? I can't do anything right, I ramble, I am way too sarcastic for my own good, scrawny, freckled, missing part of a leg, and I could go on and on with reasons for him to not like me in return.

Despite my less than pleasant thoughts, I inch closer to Jack throughout the walk, wanting desperately to be closer to him. We start approaching another small clearing that is painted beautifully with his namesake. I glance around in awe at the splendor. Never before have I enjoyed winter so much. I feel him let go of my hand and watch him walk a ways in front of me. He sighs quite heavily before turning back to me, frost covering his cheeks and making them look somewhat purple compared to his flawless white-ish blue skin.

"Hiccup. There actually was a reason other than just flying with you for me asking you out here today…" Jack starts nervously. My white-haired angel begins to rub his arm in what I interpret as nervousness and a touch of embarrassment. I give him a quizzical look. "I know this is going to sound really weird, but I just can't hold it in anymore." What is it he is going to tell me? It can't be that bad, can it?

He seems to steel himself, straightening, squaring his shoulders, and raising his chin. He walks over to me, grabs my hand and looks me straight in the eyes.

"Hiccup, I have fallen in love with you. You are everything I need. You can see me, hear me, talk with me. You trust me enough to take you flying without Toothless. You are attractive as can be and smart to boot. You are as unique as each frost design I place on the brush during winter. I need you in my life for as long as I can have you, even if my love is unrequited. I want to always be your friend, but can't help hoping for more," he finishes a bit weakly. He deflates now that the hard part is over.

I stare at him with a look of complete and utter surprise on my face. No way. He shares my sentiments? He actually likes me? I quickly close the jaw that had dropped when Jack first began speaking. He just gazes at me resignedly, as if he believes I have already rejected him by staying silent. He goes to let go of my hand and I snap back to life. I quickly grasp back onto it and hold it to my chest.

"Wait. Wait…I uh…me too. I think I love you too." I take a deep breath and continue, not looking at Jack. "You came into my life and since then, everything has changed. I used to think I would only ever like Astrid, but then you come along and completely change that. I no longer think of her in that way. You taught me how to have fun even when I felt like dragon dung. You understand me. You willingly talk to me. Toothless likes you even. And not to mention, but you are extremely attractive," I finish, breathing hard, trying not to hyperventilate.

I chance a look at Jack. The smile on his face makes it look like his face will break in two…and is simply gorgeous. I realize in that moment, I want him to only smile at me like that, no one else. I realize we love each other and had just confessed to the other. I realize we are still holding hands. I know what I need to do.

Taking a deep breath, I jerk his hand down a little and toward me, making it so our lips meet as I squeeze my eyes shut. The feeling I get when they do is a rush! Like the rest of him, Jack's lips are cool to the touch, but are also surprisingly soft. He tastes every bit of winter: a cool wind blowing, an icy brook, and a little bit of peppermint. I hesitantly move my lips against his.

He responds to me by licking my lower lip, sending shivers down my spine. While he is cold on the outside, his tongue is still warm and it startles me. As I gasp at the sensation, he slides the appendage into my mouth and begins his explorations, still tasting like winter, but even stronger now.

As the kiss continues, Jack places his hands on my hips and pulls me to him so I am flush against his body. I remove my one hand still holding onto his from my hips, bringing my other up as well, to wrap them around his neck. I have to stand on my tip-toe a little as he straightens in order to maintain the contact of our lips.

Finally, I pull away, opening my eyes to stare into his sapphire blue ones as I lower to being flat-footed. I remain in his arms with a shy look of surprise on my face. Jack just smiles gently. Then he chuckles a bit.

"Who would have ever thought you, Hiccup, would make the first move to kiss me? It was very endearing, my little tamer." I give him a soft smile in return.

"It felt like it needed to be done, so I bucked up and did it." I shrug as if it were the most obvious answer in the world and no big deal what-so-ever. Then I laugh a little in embarrassment. Wait a minute. Now that I think about what he said, he called me his little tamer.

"Wait- little tamer?" I question.

"Yes. You tamed a dragon and you have tamed my wild heart. You are a tamer, but smaller and younger than me, so you are little," he explains matter-of-factly. And now I'm blushing, to which he lightly laughs and tilts my chin up after it had dropped on shyness.

"Come on. Don't be like that. I thought we cured you of your shy nature."

"Well, apparently not."

"Apparently. You know what might help?"

"What?" I look at him in curiosity. He grins mischievously and wraps his hand around my chin, just under my right ear.

"This," is barely whispered as he kisses me again, this time much more sure of himself, but equally as gentle. It is as good the second time as the first. Our lips move together in a gentle expression of the love we hold for one another. He pulls away, licking my lips before completely moving. I feel myself turn red again and lick my lips before giving him a genuine smile of happiness.

Then, I shiver.

"Shoot. It's getting late and the cold is getting worse. Let's get you back before you get sick." With that, Jack extends his hand to me once again, prepping his staff for the journey home with the other. I put my hand in his, and he pulls me flush to his side. Jack looks down at me and kisses me chastely before we're in the air for the second time this day.

The journey back is quick and quiet. No words need to be said between us. We understand each other more than we may ever realize. We just want to be in the presence of the one we love and for that, words need not be shared.

We reach the Cove just as the sun has finished setting, finding Toothless napping by one of the trees. He perks up as we land and bounds over to greet us.

"Hey, Toothless!" I greet as he nuzzles my stomach affectionately. Then he turns to Jack.

"Yes, you great reptile, I told him and was extremely careful with him. See? He's not even injured," Jack explains to the beast I consider my best friend. Toothless seems placated by the answer and nuzzles Jack's stomach as well. I climb onto the saddle and strap myself in. When I look up, Jack is looking at us.

"Ready to go, Hiccup? I really don't want you to get a cold from this weather."

"Yeah. Let's go home, Toothless. You following us, Jack?" He looks hesitant, standing off to the side awkwardly.

"…may I?" He asks.

"May you what?" I question in return, not entirely sure what he wants. He takes a deep breath.

"May I follow you home and then stay with you tonight?" Now that surprises me. He wants to stay the night? With me? I look at him more closely to notice that he is shuffling his feet as he stares at them. I can just tell he is afraid of what my answer will be. Shaking my head, a grin makes its way to my face.

"Of course you can, Jack. You really don't even need to ask. I want you there. I want you…with me." At that, his eyes jerk up to meet mine, searching for the validity of what I've just said. A relieved look shows itself on his face as he makes his way over to us. What happens next shocks me.

He hops up on the saddle just behind me and wraps his arms around my middle, the staff acting as another restraint. He then lays his head down on my shoulder.

"I took you flying today, Hiccup. I should repay the favor. I'll ride on Toothless just this once to see what it feels like to ride a dragon. I want to show you I trust you, too, my little tamer," Jack whispers in my ear.

"Thank you, Jack. That means a lot," I respond sincerely. "Ok, Toothless. Let's go home." And with that, Toothless takes off toward the village.

When we land in Berk, a snowstorm has just started. Toothless and I make a dash inside our house, me through the front door and Toothless from his ceiling window leading to my room. Meanwhile Jack stays out a little longer to try to subdue the worst of the storm. Again, no words needed to convey this, just a deep understanding of how he works.

I make my way upstairs after leaving my boot by the door. Right at the top of the stairs, my father notices me.

"Hiccup, where did you get that coat?" he questions. I look down. Shoot! I still have Jack's cloak on!

"Uh…I found it in the woods today and picked it up. It was still in good condition and I was getting cold, so I put it on. I guess I forgot I had it on. Heh heh…" I lie in a hurry. "I'll ask around tomorrow if it's anyone's. If it's not claimed, I'll use it for my projects or just keep it," I finish as I notice a strange look on my dad's face.

"Alright then. Make sure you do that, Hiccup. Have you eaten yet?"

"Just got back in. Not that hungry, but thanks. I think I'm going to go to bed. I've had a rough day in the woods. The wind is a monster." To demonstrate my tiredness, I stretch my arms and yawn loudly.

"Ok. Have a good night then, Son."

"Good night, Dad." Now, that that's out of the way, I make my way to my room. Once there, I take off Jack's cloak and set it on the chair at my desk noticing Toothless on the slab of stone that acts as his bed.

"Hey buddy, can you light this?" I ask him as I gesture to the fire pit in the center of the room. He shoots a small lightning strike to the wood and ignites the flames. I stand there and warm up a bit before making my way over to the bed and lying down. I am just about to drift off on top of my blanket when a cool wind blows in from the ceiling window.

I sit up to see Jack scratching Toothless' neck. A fond smile presents itself on my face as I watch the two of them. I love them both, but in completely different ways, and it's really a wonder to behold seeing them getting along this well. Jack finishes spoiling my best friend and walks over to me, sitting on the side of the bed.

"You look exhausted," he starts.

"I am. It's been a long day with more stressors than normal," I return. He frowns a little at that.

"I'm sorry. Maybe I shouldn't have taken yo-"

"Don't you dare apologize, Jack Frost. You've done nothing wrong. My emotions got the better of me today, but other than that, today was probably the best day of my life. It's the first time I've felt truly loved in a long time, maybe even ever. Don't you ever apologize for loving me," I say harshly to him, surprising us both. I recoil at the tone of my own words. "I'm sorry. I shouldn't have reacted that way. But really, please don't apologize for taking me flying. It was wonderful and it led to us confessing to the other," I finish with a gentle smile as I grab his cold hand.

"I love you Hiccup. More than I'll ever be able to express in words. So this will have to do," and he kisses me for a third time. However, this kiss is a little more heated as he licks my bottom lip once again asking permission – which I grant. He cups my cheek and starts guiding me to lie down as he crawls on top of me, straddling my waist. I break the kiss when he does, looking at him in apprehension. I'm not ready for it to go this far yet.

Apparently he notices this and swings his left leg back and just lies down next to me. He sticks out his arm and moves my head to rest in the crook of his arm and torso, pulling the rest of me against him. Not entirely sure what to do, I just drape my arm over his side and curl the other to my chest. Jack tangles our legs, trying to bring me closer to him, before reaching over to grab the edge of my blanket. He pulls it over both of us after releasing it from under our bodies. I snuggle closer to him as my eyes drift closed. I sigh in contentment. Right now, everything is as it should be. I have my best friend and someone who loves me in my life and I couldn't be happier.

* * *

I look at Hiccup as he drifts to sleep in my arms. Really, he is so adorable. I watch him with an amused, but love-filled grin. Then, I look over at the other occupant of the room who is observing us knowingly.

_Please, take care of him. He deserves to be loved and cared for. So help me, Green Death, if you hurt him, I will destroy you, Jack Frost._

I chuckle in slight nervousness.

"Don't worry, Toothless. I don't intend to harm him or break his heart. I want to love and protect him for as long as I can. After all, you two are the only ones who can see me. I will always cherish the both of you, you big reptile, you," I respond.

Toothless regards me carefully, as if trying to tell if I am lying or not. He snorts in acceptance of my answer. As he is laying his head back down, he tells me, _Then I approve of your affection for my human. Good night, Jack._

"Good night, Toothless. Sleep well." He snorts to indicate he heard me. I look back down at the sleeping youth in my arms.

"Good night to you too, Hiccup, my beloved little tamer," I whisper as I kiss the top of his head. He shivers a little and snuggles closer to me in his sleep. I lay my head down and pull him in, my eyes drifting shut as my mind slowly goes blank in the throes of resting. I don't normally dream as I rest my eyes since I don't actually need to sleep, but tonight is different. Tonight, I dream. I dream of the days to come with Hiccup by my side, having the most fun I've ever had. I know in my sleep, a smile makes its way to my face that stays the whole night through. And for once, I am content and happy being Jack Frost, harbinger of winter to the isle of Berk.

**A/N: This is the longest one-shot I have ever written. It is roughly 6,872 words! Again, I hope you all enjoyed it. Constructive criticism is welcome. Flaming is not. I do not have a beta at this time, so please forgive any grammatical or spelling errors you see.**

**Please review! It would make me super happy. :D ~Kurai  
**


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